Jon Stewart on Trump's Assertion of Being Unaware Regarding His Personal MRI: 'That’s Not Physically Possible'.
Late-night television hosts this week directed their focus on former President Donald Trump, criticizing his use of an ableist slur and what they described as unconvincing attempts to address growing questions about his cognitive health.
Jon Stewart's Scathing Critique
Beginning his monologue, Jon Stewart focused on a controversial post in which Trump referred to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz using a widely condemned ableist term. "On Thanksgiving?!" Stewart remarked. "Did you mix it up with Festivus?"
When questioned by reporters if he felt any remorse, Trump reportedly doubled down, insisting there was "something seriously wrong" with the Democratic governor.
"Something wrong with him? With him?" Stewart retorted. "You were sitting with your family at Thanksgiving, stomach full of turkey and pie, surrounded by the love of your notorious associates, but your first thought was to Truth a slur at Tim Walz? And there’s something wrong with him?"
The comedian then addressed Trump's peculiar account of a recently disclosed medical scan. In an attempt to downplay worries, Trump claimed he had "zero knowledge" what part of his body was even scanned, suggesting it "couldn't have been his brain" because he "aced a cognitive test."
"That is an impossibility," Stewart shot back. "Being completely unaware, it’s not possible. What could you possibly say to the doctor? ‘Wait, stop, don’t tell me. I want to find out at my scan unveiling celebration.’"
He added, "For God’s sakes, man, were you not the least bit interested? When they laid you down in a tube for a half an hour, you didn’t want to know what they might be doing? Or did you just think to yourself, ‘What a loud tanning bed’?"
Stewart further ridiculed Trump's boast of a "flawless result" on the scan. "That’s how they score the MRIs," he quipped. "You either get a big stamp, ‘Perfect,’ or you get in red ink, ‘See me.’"
Stephen Colbert's Satirical Take
On his own program, Stephen Colbert pointed out growing discontent among some one-time allies. "Certain supporters are starting to notice that Trump views them like livestock," he remarked, citing anger about funding a gilded event space over addressing economic issues.
"Elsewhere, Trump celebrated Thanksgiving in his customary fashion – with racism," Colbert quipped, alluding to an anti-immigrant rant from the weekend. "Amidst all of that nonsense," he summarized, the president employed the offensive term against Governor Walz.
After Walz responded to "Make the scan public," Trump promised do so, despite his claimed ignorance of what was scanned.
"Well, here's an idea: maybe the part that’s broken is the part that’s meant to retain that information," Colbert noted.
He then mocked the follow-up official explanation—a medical note stating the MRI was for routine evaluation. "OK, fair enough," Colbert said. "People his age also benefit from retiring, so … can we write that prescription next?"
Jimmy Kimmel's Direct Criticism
Jimmy Kimmel also blasted Trump's choice of words. "Look, he is capable of being presidential when he wants to be!" he joked. "I wonder why he didn’t get that Nobel peace prize. It makes no sense."
Regarding Trump's follow-up comment that he thinks "there’s something wrong" with Walz, Kimmel was direct: "another bold statement from the president of the middle school."
Kimmel also addressed Trump's insistence of record-high approval ratings. "Which means it’s not just books he can’t read," Kimmel said, noting survey data showing high negative ratings. "There are gas station bathrooms on Yelp with better reviews than Donald Trump right now."
The host concluded by highlighting Trump's pledge to pardon a imprisoned former Honduran president. "Critics have noted the staggering contradiction of Trump taking a hard line in one instance, while at the same time freeing a man who shipped a massive quantity of cocaine to this country," said Kimmel. "But those people are just detractors, you know? Relax!"
"During his campaign, Trump made it perfectly obvious: his top priorities were a) granting clemency to cartel leaders and b) constructing a venue to host formal dances," he added. "Promises made, promises kept."